This course will be taught remotely in real-time. Details here. 

Professional development for high school educators, faculty chairs, and all those interested in Waldorf high school education

This course covers three key areas:

Foundations of Human Experience

How can Rudolf Steiner’s first lecture course for teachers, the fourteen lectures known as Foundations of Human Experience (formerly, Study of Man), inform high school teaching in a Waldorf school in 2021? How do we apply Steiner’s concepts of the human soul, spirit, and physical body to growing and developing adolescents today? How are humanities, arts, and sciences integrated healthfully, and how do they mutually support healthy human development? What principles underlie all of the subjects we teach, and how do we interpret and incorporate these for contemporary students? Through reading, brief written responses, pre-recorded introductory lecture, and conversation via videoconference, participants will engage with one of Steiner’s fundamental educational texts.

Thematic Connections 1: Human Development and Educational Method

How does Steiner’s image of a developing human being inform our methods, from day to day, course to course, block to block, and year to year? This section aims to be eminently practical, giving teachers examples and tools to use regardless of their subject areas. Then, through subject-specific breakout groups, participants will work on those aspects most relevant to their courses and teaching.

Thematic Connections 2: Integrating Courses, Block Schedule, Block Plan, Steiner Study

Continuing on work begun in the earlier section, participants will examine how their courses and subjects fit into the high school as a whole, then work collaboratively on practical aspects of their work, developing integrated, cross-grade curricula, and subject-specific block plans. This section also intends to address the palatable, open-minded, ongoing study of Steiner’s work as a foundation for Waldorf high school teaching.

 

NOTE: This course is useful for seasoned educators who are new to Waldorf teaching, specialists looking to become Waldorf high school teachers, current Waldorf high school teachers, and those looking to develop new Waldorf high schools. While it continues and builds on Dr. Sagarin’s past four Waldorf high school Sunbridge Summer Series courses, participation in one of these previous courses is not a requirement for attendance, as new registrants will get as much out of this week as those who have attended previously.

 

Instructor

Stephen Sagarin is co-founder and faculty chair at the Berkshire Waldorf High School, where he teaches history and art. He is also a core faculty member and co-director of Sunbridge’s Elementary Teacher Education program, where he has been teaching since 2000, and serves as a Sunbridge Board trustee. Steve is a former teacher and administrator at the Great Barrington Rudolf Steiner School and the Waldorf School of Garden City, the high school from which he graduated. He also taught history of education at Teachers College, Columbia University, and human development at the City University of New York; is the former editor of the Research Bulletin of the Research Institute for Waldorf Education; and writes, lectures, mentors teachers, and consults with Waldorf schools on teaching and administration. The author of The History of Waldorf Education in the United States: Past, Present and Future, Steve has a PhD in history from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Columbia University, and a bachelor’s degree in art history, with a certificate of proficiency in fine art, from Princeton University.

Those who took Steve’s Summer Series 2020 High School course had this to say:

• The course has been excellent. I particularly appreciate Steve’s approach. He combines the practical with the inspirational and is always guided by what is coming from the participants. I also think his dogma-free style allows students to feel comfortable that all questions are welcomed, that everything is fair game.
• Stephen was great. His balance of belief in Steiner coupled with his ability to crack jokes and not take himself or Steiner so seriously was refreshing.
• The readings were short enough to absorb. Going over the content each day really helped to better understand Steiner’s lectures. The breakout groups were excellent and led to many thought provoking discussions with my peers.
• I think he is an excellent instructor who provides deep insight and shares objective comments. He is not being judgmental when delivering lectures and contents.
• Fantastic! Stephen bring a fresh, down to earth perspective.
• This is my second course with Stephen and I appreciate his approach, his wealth of knowledge without being “all knowing.” His practical suggestions and his responsiveness to the classroom make you as the student feel heard. He is an inspiring teacher and facilitator and very personable and in touch with the world today as he has that connection with teenagers directly and not just as an academic. He knows when to talk and when to give space.
• It is clear that Stephen is extremely knowledgeable on Steiner’s works. I found that he presented his deep understanding in a way that was accessible to me and that he placed context around some of the concepts that were otherwise very difficult to understand. I learned a great deal from Steve this week and truly walk away from this study more motivated to learn about Steiner’s work. Thank you!
• Stephen Sagarin was an excellent teacher. He lived what he taught. His demeanor as a colleague rather than a teacher/mentor was very appealing as he made him extremely approachable. I have attended plenty of workshops and his approach to Steiner’s teaching was a very alive experience. I had many questions around this form of education, although it will be my fourth year teaching, and Stephen brought clarity the questions I had. His blog notes were very useful and every minute spent in his classroom was very much worth it. There were so many concrete ideas that I came back with in spite of this work being so much “esoteric.” I would love to come back to Stephen’s course every year if he offers one. Thanks so much, Stephen!

Your course also includes art with Brigitte Bley-Swinston.

 

Schedule

This course takes place June 27-July 2 in a synchronous online classroom

Sunday evening: 7-7:30pm technical check-in; first session starts promptly at 7:30 and ends at 9
Monday-Thursday: About 4.25 hours of formal instruction delivered between 10-4:30
Friday morning: Last session runs 10-12

ALL TIMES LISTED ARE EASTERN (NY) TIME ZONE

NOTE: Participants should be prepared to work on course-related assignments outside of their regularly scheduled instructional sessions (including some that may be assigned in advance), as well as to be available to attend late afternoon and/or evening facilitator-led discussions on topics that may arise during the course of the week.

 

Cost
$570 includes all resource materials and a $25 non-refundable deposit. See main summer page for discount options.

NOTE: Participants will be expected to procure some materials to use during their course. A materials list will be sent out three weeks prior to your course start date.

 

 

Questions?
Please contact Barbara Vitale, admissions and summer coordinator, at [email protected] or 845-425-0055 x20

 

Sunbridge reserves the right to make faculty substitutions when necessary. See registration form for refund policy.